Argall

Flemington Community Hub

The new Flemington Community Hub commissioned by the Glen Eira City Council is located at Debney’s Park and is part of a redevelopment of the site. The existing sports club pavilion and community centre will be demolished and replaced with the new double-story community hub. The site also accommodates a cricket oval, two soccer pitches, and an existing car park. The vision for the hub is to create a new heart for the community and to provide a centre that brings all people together from diverse and multi-generational backgrounds. The proposed development will provide the community with a vibrant, welcoming, and flexible centre, with activity and program rooms, family facilities, creative spaces, lifelong learning spaces, consulting and office spaces, and sporting facilities. The Flemington Community Hub will be a certified 5 Star Green Star rated building.
The roof of the structure is composed of 24m spanning spotted gum glue laminated timber portal frames supporting glue laminated timber purlins. These portal frames are supported by timber external that are vertically isolated from the level one structure. The level one structure is a two-way spanning flat slab supported by block and insitu RC walls and insitu RC columns. These are then supported by a suspended ground slab with beam grillage and two way slab panels over 16m deep driven piles penetrating through Coode Island silt to the basalt below.

Architect:

Year:

Construction Budget:

Challenges:

Croxon Ramsay
2020 to 2023
$20M
The site for the building was located over an existing tip over a Coode Island silt layer and unfavorable gases were detected along with other contaminants below the surface. 16-metre-deep driven piles were required to be adopted for the foundation design as a result and this process was required to be managed closely. The suspended floor connections were also required to be sealed effectively to negate any gases potentially entering the building. The other main challenge was resolving building compliance issues around the timber structure. This was resolved with the building surveyor by isolating the external timber columns to only support the portal frames supporting the roof structure.

Architect:

Croxon Ramsay

Year:

2020 to 2023

Construction Budget:

$20M

Challenges:

The site for the building was located over an existing tip over a Coode Island silt layer and unfavorable gases were detected along with other contaminants below the surface. 16-metre-deep driven piles were required to be adopted for the foundation design as a result and this process was required to be managed closely. The suspended floor connections were also required to be sealed effectively to negate any gases potentially entering the building. The other main challenge was resolving building compliance issues around the timber structure. This was resolved with the building surveyor by isolating the external timber columns to only support the portal frames supporting the roof structure.

ANDREW GALL, Director

Argall was founded in 2017 by Andrew Gall, an engineer with a passion for complex design and breaking the mould. His work experience as a senior structural engineer across a variety of project disciplines made him realise there was a real need for a bespoke people and service-oriented structural engineering consultancy that would inspire sustainability practices and innovation often lacking in big companies.

This is over and above his experience in traditional procurement roles, his work with builders in the design and construct field, managing projects in sport, tertiary education, the arts and zoological fields, as well as community, commercial, residential and multi- residential enterprises. With such a wealth of knowledge and understanding of different design methodologies, he has the expertise to challenge the status quo in his new venture.